BA is investing in fuel refiner Lanzajet, which is building its first commercial scale sustainable fuel plant in Georgia.

The partnership includes early stage planning for a “potential large scale commercial SAF biorefinery in the UK”.

The fuel is derived from sustainably sourced ethanol, which BA said reduces greenhouse gas emissions by “more than 70% compared to conventional fossil jet fuel, equivalent to taking almost 27,000 petrol or diesel cars off the road each year”. 

Ethanol can be made from by-products such as agricultural and municipal waste. 

BA has an existing partnership with sustainable fuels technology company Velocys, aiming to build a facility to convert household and commercial waste into renewable sustainable jet fuel in the UK by 2025.

BA chief executive Sean Doyle said: ““Following the successful start-up of the Georgia plant, we hope to then deploy the technology and SAF production capacity in the UK.

“The UK has the experience and resources needed to become a global leader in the deployment of such sustainable aviation fuel production facilities and we need government support to drive decarbonisation and accelerate the realisation of this vision.”